Friday 13th February 2026 | Austin Ainsworth
Wakefield AFC returned to NCEL Division One action on Friday night, as they welcomed Crowle Colts to The Hunters Stadium for a clash under the lights.
Looking to make it six wins in a row, Wakefield were no doubt licking their lips at the prospect of facing Crowle Colts who came in to the game with the exact opposite of Wakefield’s run of form; with five losses from their last five leaving them firmly planted in mid-table.
Jason Blunt made just one change to the Wakefield side victorious away at Goole, Billy Mole coming back into midfield as Jerome Greaves made way. That meant the team lined up in the now familiar 4-2-3-1 formation that has seen Wakefield rise to second in the league amidst an unbeaten run of 13 league games.
In what ultimately turned out to be a game of two halves, things set off as expected with Wakefield confidently stroking the ball about the pitch. Wakefield were utterly dominant and had a star showing from winger Ethan Kachosa to thank for a healthy half-time advantage.
At the risk of veering into hyperbole, Kachosa put in a performance reminiscent of Gareth Bale’s infamous destruction of Inter Milan’s Maicon; playing a hand in three first half goals as Crowle’s full-bank was unable to lay a glove on Wakefield’s wide man.
He struck first in the 11th minute when he entered into a foot race with the full-back down the left wing, winning comfortably before looping a cross to the back post. Defender Bolton Makwedza then timed his run to perfection to power home a header for his fifth goal of the season.
Crowle sensed danger and put two men of Kachosa, but it was to no avail as he again burst down the left hand side just two minutes later to pull a teasing low cross back across goal. This time striker Akeel Francis – with his 17th goal of the season – was on hand to meet the cross with a skilful flick to divert home for Wakefield’s second.
Wakefield then had a brief period in the half where it appeared they had ever so slightly taken their foot off the gas, and that lead to a lull in proceedings. Thankfully, Kachosa injected further life into the game in the 36th minute – again with a blistering left-sided run that let the Crowl full-back for dead – crossing for Tom Hinton who maintained his impressive output of better than a goal involvement per game with his 19th goal of the season.
Half-time bought about two Wakefield substitutions, one seeing the departure of captain Billy Mole, whose late second half booking already meant he would miss the next two games. Whether the changes, or the apparent comfort of the 3-0 scoreline affected Wakefield’s approach to the second period, the difference was night and day as Crowle gradually found a route back into the game from what should’ve been an impossible position.
Wakefield did still see lots of the ball, and with that – mainly through attempts from distance – had a number of chances; however their play was more lethargic and lacking in urgency. That provided Crowle a foothold in the game that was not present in the first half, and a warning shot was fired towards Wakefield when that resulted in a stinging shot to the bottom corner drawing an awesome, stretching save from Wakefield’s Drew Bremer.
That moment proved to be more than false promise for the visitors too, as minutes later a swift counter-attack saw Joe Simpson finish a perfectly placed square ball past the this time helpless Bremer, after Wakefield had allowed themselves to be outnumbered in defence.
Things got even more shaky in an increasingly tense ending to the game, with the referee saving Wakefield through the award of a soft foul on Bremer after he was caught under the ball, attempting to recover from a high turnover of possession after slack play from Wakefield at the back.
The reprieve didn’t last too long though, as Crowle struck a second from a corner in the 90th minute after a failed attempt from Wakefield of clearing the ball allowed Thomas Moulds to bundle the ball home.
From where Wakefield were at half-time and the grander picture of the run of games they are on, it was unfathomable that the home side would let the three points slip that had seemed so secure at the interval. However, they had just Makwedza to thank for not doing so as he made a vital block in his own area to deny Crowle, who had again cut a sleeping Wakefield open as the game moved into stoppage time.
That provided Wakefield just enough breathing room to see the game to the final whistle, holding onto what became an unexpectedly narrow win. But, three points are three points and a win is a win, meaning Wakefield extend their unbeaten and winning runs to further cement their place in second, now nine points adrift of Dearne & District.
Wakefield, once the jubilation of the result has passed, will no doubt get back to work on the training pitch to iron out any difficulties as they look to avoid a repeat of this second half. The next opportunity to respond on the pitch will then come this Saturday at home to Selby Town; kick-off 15:00PM on 21/02/2026.
Match Stats
Half Time: 3-0
Full Time: 3-2
Attendance: 204
Wakefield AFC Starting XI:
Drew Bremer – Bolton Makwedza, Matthew Swift, Mo Conteh, Owen Thomas – Billy Mole (C), Callum Nicell – Basile Zottos, Tom Hinton, Ethan Kachosa – Akeel Francis
Wakefield AFC Subs Used:
46m, Eliel Anku for Billy Mole
46m, Chris Salt for Mo Conteh
75m, Lance Friedrich for Basile Zottos
75m, Oli Robinson for Akeel Francis
Possession:
Wakefield AFC 71% – 29% Crowle Colts
Passes Completed:
Wakefield AFC 492 – 226 Crowle Colts
Goals:
11m, Bolton Makwedza
13m, Akeel Francis
36m, Tom Hinton
Wakefield AFC Assists:
11m, Ethan Kachosa
13m, Ethan Kachosa
36m, Ethan Kachosa
Attempts
Wakefield AFC
First Half
Shots on Target: 5
Shots off Target: 2
Second Half
Shots on Target: 3
Shot off Target: 6
Crowle Colts
First Half
Shots on Target: 0
Shots off Target: 1
Second Half
Shots on Target: 3
Shots off Target: 0